Sunday, July 28, 2013

Not much to say, just sharing some images. Enjoy, & leave a comment letting me know what shots are your favorites & why.

Babies stay with their parents a long time, & they don't get their white feathers til around 5 yrs old.

Exploring nature through photography is way more fun with my family. I still want to see the shots David got with his great lens!

Marie, my twin, was our tour guide for the morning. She lives in the area & took us where we needed to be. She let us do the work, & I'm glad I turned to see what she was doing in time to catch this peaceful moment she was having.

"Oh crap. Here comes trouble."

"Hey now, there's enough for everyone."

"...oh. I guess they had something else in mind. They need to get a room."

"Give it up, Mr. Eagle. We have you surrounded." says the starfish.

The babies of the clan. Waiting for their white feathers to come in must be like a teen waiting for his drivers license to arrive.

Friday, July 26, 2013

Choosing where to travel first involves things like budget & timing. I love love love to travel. Somewhere in me is an explorer that gets to get a breath of fresh air from time to time. There are so many places I want to go, but each summer I end up in the same place. Why? Family. How does one choose between the love of family & the desire to explore? I face that choice each year as I plan the summer for my son & me (my husband does not like to travel).

This year the decision was a no brainer. My mom is turning 80 in September. We never give her a party because it's not in the summer when the family can get together. My twin had the bright idea this year to give mom an "Almost 80" party. We celebrated last month, when the family could all get together.

The trick each year as I repeat the same travel destination (thank God I love the place!) is to find ways to work in the explorer's desires with the same family trip. This year I chose to take my son whale watching (see previous post).

Some time after I lost my oldest daughter, our family gathered, everyone's children in tow, etc... & one of my brothers joyfully announced "WOW! What a rare thing to have everyone together at one time!" My heart sank. No, it plummeted to the depths of hell. I quickly said "Not everyone is here." then I had to leave the room for a moment. I did not want to ruin his joy, but the fact was that NOT everyone was there. My daughter was gone & would never be in another family photo, or our arms again. We would NEVER have the whole family together again, & I seemed to be the only one who realized that. In a family of 7, each with their own, one tiny person can be forgotten easily enough. It's the little things.

Time spent with many of my family members, cousins included, is ALWAYS fun & exciting, even in the down times. It's in the little things that we find our joys. This post is to remind us all how to find those little things & celebrate them, because nothing is perfect, nothing is pure, except the love God has for us. That love is shown in the little things & if you look you can see them everywhere.
Here is just some of what I found on this trip....